


Crystallization

by Wanderingcourier



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Human, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/F, enemies to lab partners to lovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-08
Updated: 2019-08-08
Packaged: 2020-08-16 02:34:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 799
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20166697
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wanderingcourier/pseuds/Wanderingcourier
Summary: It's two AM. Peridot has no clue what she's doing. Pearl might.





	Crystallization

It was nearing two in the morning. The numbers didn’t look any better. Peridot had re-wrote the calculations in a new sheet, worked them out on paper symbolically, even switched questions with Pearl and let her take a crack at the stupid thing. The numbers told the same story: they had almost thee grams more citric acid than they started with.

“I’d understand if we’d lost product,” Pearl mumbled, bent over the battered lab notebook, “or if we’d gained a few decimal points. It’d be a simple rounding error…” she trailed off. She and Peridot had said some variation on that statement probably about fifteen times in the last hour. It still wasn’t a rounding error.

“Maybe I can re-calculate the titration results? If the concentration is off, that would explain it, wouldn’t it?”

Peridot shook her head.

“I reran them already. Knock yourself out if you want to double check me.”

Pearl glanced at Peridot.

“That isn’t what I meant.”

Peridot took a deep breath and ran a hand through her already messy hair. A snappish comment bubbled up in her throat, and she shoved her chair away from the table before she said anything mean. When did she eat last?

“I’m gonna get another cup of coffee.” She said, grabbing her mug from the table and stalking towards the door. 

Pearl typed something up on her laptop. Probably the titration data. Whatever. Pearl had dark circles under her eyes. She looked as bad as Peridot did, probably.

Peridot hesitated at the door of the study room they had been occupying for the last eight hours.

“Do you want a soda or anything?” She asked quietly. Pearl shook her head, gnawing on the back of her pen. Peridot shrugged and pushed open the door, making a beeline towards the self-service coffee machine.

As she made her way over, she paused at the vending machine. Maybe it would hold the answers to this stupid lab.

It mostly held candy, of course. She bought a twix bar without thinking about it. Maybe actually eating would help. It would at least prevent her from literally passing out.

As the twix bar made its slow journey to the front of the metal spiral holding it in place, Peridot took a moment to glare at the sour skittles. Fucking citric acid. This was worse than freshman year, when the TA had left the bottle open and ruined their experiment by letting the…

The twix thunked to the bottom of the vending machine, but Peridot was still staring at the sour skittles. Son of a bitch. Son of a _bitch_, how could she have been so oblivious?

She darted a few steps back towards the study room before remembering her candy bar. She’d _earned _that damn thing. She grabbed it and stuffed it in her hoodie pocket before running through the empty library back to the study room.

Pearl started when Peridot threw the door open.

“Are you still doing the titration calculations?” Peridot asked.

“Yes…? You aren’t mad about that, right?”

“Use the molecular weight for hydrated citric acid and see if that fixes it.”

Pearl blinked, before the same realization Peridot had at the vending machine set in.

“Oh! Yeah, I bet that fixes it, hang on,” She began typing on her laptop again. Peridot crouched next to her, eyes fixed on the laptop’s screen as Pearl edited the molecular weight and resumed the mass balance.

“Point four three grams missing,” Pearl announced proudly.

“Thank fucking god,” Peridot said, sort of laughing and maybe a little on the verge of tears.

She was still looking at the total when Pearl leaned over and pecked her cheek. She froze, looking at Pearl, and wow they were. Really close together. Physically. Pearl was staring back at her, the both of them caught in some sort of moment.

Fuck it. The analysis was good as done. Peridot let herself lean forward and kiss Pearl, Pearl’s hand coming up to cradle her face in a way that was only a little awkward. Peridot steadied herself with a hand on Pearl’s chair, and then Pearl had a hand on her waist and was pulling Peridot up to half straddle Pearl’s lap. Peridot cautiously parted her lips, and Pearl _went_ for it, hungrily pressing back against Peridot. Peridot made a strangled, needy noise and let Pearl lead the kiss, her breaths turning to gasps.

Pearl pulled away first, and Peridot held stone still for a long moment, all previous bravado used up in the kiss. Against her better judgement, she grinned, holding back a breathless giggle.

“I probably should have figured it out sooner,” Peridot said.

“It’s not like I helped much.” Admitted Pearl.

Peridot suspected that neither of them had any clue what they were referring to. 

**Author's Note:**

> Written on a trans-atlantic flight in about an hour, posted from an airport wendys. Because there is no emotional high like the high of figuring out how to finish your lab report.


End file.
